Samuel Bernard is a freelance writer, critic and editor. He writes for The Weekend Australian's 'Notable Books' column, as well as features and criticism for Good Reading Magazine. He has a Master of Writing and is completing a PhD in Creative Writing at Monash University. Thomas Rock is completing a PhD in Creative Writing at Monash University. His thesis examines optimism in contemporary Australian young-adult science-fiction. He works in a primary school library in regional Victoria. Vera Yingzhi Gu has a PhD in Translation Studies and is an interpreting instructor in the Master of Interpreting and Translation Studies at Monash University. Vera has a strong research interest in translation and interpreting pedagogy. She is a professional translator and interpreter in Chinese/Mandarin and English language pairs and a conference interpreter by training.
These are spirited, diverse and most welcome notes of defiance. -- Peter Rose Verge 2023 is properly defiant, in its will to bring you superb new writing, in the face of the cataclysms of our time, defiant against fear and anguish. The words between these covers are unflinching, crisp, imaginative. -- Ali Alizadeh